


When First Your Eye I Ey'd

by PorcupineGirl



Category: Baby-Sitters Club - Ann M. Martin
Genre: Background Slash, College, F/M, Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-12-22
Updated: 2013-12-22
Packaged: 2018-01-05 12:41:15
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,449
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1093985
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PorcupineGirl/pseuds/PorcupineGirl
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It's the first day of Mary Anne's last semester at college, and she's stuck in a freshman comp class - but running into an old familiar face might make this her favorite class yet.</p>
            </blockquote>





	When First Your Eye I Ey'd

**Author's Note:**

  * For [bloodredcherries](https://archiveofourown.org/users/bloodredcherries/gifts).



"Mrow."

Mary Anne cracked an eye open and, as she expected, found Tigger's face mere inches from her own. She groaned and rolled over to look at her alarm clock.

"Of course. Damn you, Tigger. You couldn't let me sleep _ten more minutes_? Look, do you see that?"

She picked up the offending cat and shoved his face into the glowing numbers.

"That says 7:50. Seven. Five. Oh. I know you're a cat, but that's no excuse. When it says eight oh oh, I will get up and feed you. Ugh." She flopped back down onto her pillow, bringing Tigger down with her. He quickly decided that he was not interested in cuddling and squirmed out of her arms and back onto the floor.

"Ten more minutes," she grumbled, and pulled her quilt over her head.

When her alarm eventually did go off, Mary Anne dutifully rose and fed her starving grey tabby before heading to the shower. As she scrubbed her hair, she tried to remind herself that she may be up at 8am, but at least it was for a good reason - her first day of classes in her _last semester_ at the University of Connecticut. Only four more classes to go, though unfortunately one of them was a freshman composition class offered only at 9am Her freshman year it had conflicted with an advanced seminar in her major, psychology, that she'd wanted to take, and then she'd managed to put off taking it... until now.

She checked her email and Facebook while eating a bowl of cereal. She had to admit, she liked that she had the apartment to herself at this hour. She could hear Kristy still snoring in her room, and the door to the third bedroom, containing Amanda, who'd just moved in after break, was still closed. Neither had classes until eleven.

At a quarter to nine, Mary Anne stooped to give Tigger a last scritch before heading out the door. They only lived a couple blocks from the building this class was in, but Mary Anne would always rather be a few minutes early to class than walk in a few minutes late, especially on the first day. As she tromped through the fresh inch of snow on the ground, she wished she'd bothered to take this class earlier. Almost all of her friends were junior and seniors, and no one else still needed a composition class. There would be no one to sit with, no one to complain about writing papers with. 

She imagined Kristy walking into the same situation - she'd probably glance around the room, find some girls who looked like they'd just been to the gym or volleyball practice or something, and plop right down and make some new friends. That is, if she didn't already know someone - being on the softball team, she actually knew some freshmen. The only place other than classes that Mary Anne met anyone was the psychology lab she worked in, and there were no freshmen working there this year. She went to parties and all, it's not like she had no life, but she tended to stick to her small group and a beer or two, nothing crazy. She didn't walk up to a group of new people at a party and start dancing with them, and she knew she couldn't walk up to a group of strangers during class and sit with them.

Luckily, the small lecture hall where the class would be held was less than half-full when she got there, so she had her pick of seats that weren't right next to anyone. Much less awkward that way - not that she minded sitting next to a stranger, but better to let them sit by her than the other way around. She arranged her things and then began doodling on her notebook as the seats filled.

"Mary Anne? Mary Anne Spier?"

Mary Anne jumped a little and looked up from her doodles. A guy was sliding into the seat next to her, and her brain registered three things in quick succession: 1) It wasn't someone she knew, someone in her circle of friends here at school, 2) he was _hot_ , but 3) he looked extremely familiar and she was sure that it was someone she _should_ know. She hoped she didn't look like too much of idiot as she opened her mouth, but couldn't think of anything to say other than, "Um, yeah, hi?"

The hot guy suddenly looked worried. "Uh, hi. It's Byron. Pike? From Stoneybrook? Sorry, were you saving this seat?"

Mary Anne's eyes widened in shock. "Oh! Oh no! Not at all! Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry, I feel so stupid now! Byron!" She smiled. She saw way fewer old friends from Stoneybrook around campus than she'd expected to when he got to college. "Wow, I guess you would be a freshman now, huh? Sorry, you just - you look so different, I guess I haven't seen you since -"

Byron blushed as he cut her off. "Let's not talk about the last time you saw me."

Mary Anne hadn't actually remembered the exact circumstances of the last time she'd seen him until now. When he blushed it came back to her - the summer before she'd left for college, she'd run into the triplets at the public pool, and Adam had depantsed Byron just as she and Claudia were walking up to them. She blushed, too, at the memory, and was silently thankful that she'd only seen his bottom. "Right. Um, I haven't seen you since high school, how's that? How's Mal?"

Byron shrugged. "She's an English major at Wellesley. I guess she likes it. She doesn't talk to us much. I think she's going through a phase."

"It happens. So are your brothers here, too?"

"Nah. Adam's at SCC and Jordan got the hell out of Connecticut, he's at UCLA. But you knew that, right?"

Mary Anne frowned, puzzled. Her stepbrother was a freshman at UCLA, and he'd been best friends with the triplets back in the day. She was in regular contact with him on Facebook, you'd think he would have mentioned if he'd hung out with Jordan Pike. "No, that's weird. Has he run into Jeff? He's there, too."

Now it was Byron's eyes' turn to widen. "Oh, shit. Forget it, forget I mentioned it."

Now Mary Anne was worried. "What? Is it something about Jeff? Is he doing okay in school? He would have told us if he got kicked out, wouldn't he?"

Byron leaned close to her. She could feel her cheeks heating again and she tried hard to focus on being worried about Jeff. "Look," Byron said quietly, "It's really not my place to say, but Jeff and Jordan are, uh... They're, y'know... together?"

Mary Anne let out a squeal. Jeff had come out to her and Dawn over a year ago, but hadn't gotten up the courage to talk to his parents yet (not that any of them - birth or step - would be upset, but Mary Anne guessed that didn't necessarily mean it was _easy_ ). "That's so sweet! Don't worry, I knew Jeff's gay, I don't know why he didn't tell me about that, though! Oh, that must be why he was talking about coming to Stoneybrook for spring break. I thought it was a weird choice for his first spring break."

Byron laughed, but before they could exchange any more gossip the professor started speaking at the front of the room. Mary Anne tried her hardest to concentrate, but kept finding herself sneaking glances at Byron - and she thought he might be doing the same. And she was about 85% sure that when he passed her the stack of syllabi, he brushed his fingers against hers on purpose. _Man,_ she found herself thinking as she snuck a peek at Byron's very nice cheekbones, _if the triplets are as identical as they used to be, Jeff's done well for himself._

Mary Anne was disappointed when Byron stood up as soon as class ended, but instead of walking away, he stood there playing with the strap on his backpack and blushing again. She was relieved when he spoke. "So, uh, I have a class on the other side of campus I need to get to, but, uh, we should get together sometime. Y'know, to study and catch up... and stuff. Maybe I could get your, uh, your phone number? Mary Anne?"

She could not believe how adorably awkward and shy he was being - and Mary Anne Spier knew from awkward and shy. For once she felt like the bold one, though, in comparison. "Definitely! Here, put yours in my phone, and I'll give you mine. You know, I only live a few blocks from here," she continued as she typed into his phone, "You should really come over sometime, I bet Kristy would love to see you. You want to come have dinner on Friday? I'll cook."

"Kristy Thomas? You guys live together?" May Anne nodded and handed his phone back. "That's really cool, that you're still friends. Yeah, I'll see you Friday then. Well, I'll see you Thursday in class, I guess, and then again on Friday. I mean... See you." He was blushing more deeply than before. Mary Anne hoped she looked that good blushing, since she did so much of it.

"Yeah, see you!" She waved as he walked down the aisle of the lecture hall.

Ten minutes later, she was closing the door to her apartment behind her. Kristy was sitting in the living room, eating cereal in front of her laptop.

"The early riser returns!"

Mary Anne dropped her backpack and flopped onto the couch next to her best friend. "Oh my _god_ , Kristy, you will not _believe_ who is in my 9am class!"

"Cam Geary?" Kristy asked around a mouthful of cereal. Mary Anne gave her a playful shove, and Kristy had to work hard to keep the cereal in either her bowl or her mouth from winding up on the keyboard of her laptop.

" _No,_ " Mary Anne said, "And Cam Geary is happily _married_ now and mostly working behind the scenes as a director and producer, I'll have you know."

Kristy cracked up. "Don't tell me you still buy magazines about him!"

"Some website had a 'Where are they now?' article a few weeks ago, okay? _Anyhow_ ," Mary Anne continued, "I'll give you a few hints: He's a freshman, he's from Stoneybrook, and he has somehow managed to surpass Cam Geary in hotness over the past three years or so. Oh, and I'm making him dinner on Friday."

"Wait, this guy asked you out on the first day of class - to make him dinner? What the hell?"

Mary Anne blushed for the tenth time that morning. "I asked him."

Kristy's eyes were as big as saucers. "Holy shit! Now I've heard everything! Wow, who is three years younger than us from Stoneybrook who could inspire _you_ to take the initiative?"

Mary Anne wanted to wait for Kristy to at least try to guess, but she just couldn't. "Byron Pike! Can you believe it?"

"Are you serious?" Kristy was nearly squealing now, which was rather un-Kristy-like. "Mary Anne, you're dating a BSC member's sibling? We're going to have to hold a special meeting about this, y'know."

Mary Anne giggled. Kristy trying to call special meetings of a club that hadn't existed in years would never get old. Mary Anne would still be giggling at the joke when her hair was grey. "We're not _dating_ , it's not even really a proper _date_. I told him you'd be around, too. Well, sort of. You don't have to be. Obviously. But you don't have to not be, either!" Mary Anne's babbling was interrupted by the text alert on her phone.

She was surprised to see a text from Byron already - wasn't he in class?

_Stupid freshman here - I'm lost. Do you know where Smith Hall is? I'm at the student center. I thought it was right next door._

Mary Anne smiled to herself. He'd been there for a semester, he _must_ have had friends he could ask, but instead he wanted to keep flirting with her.

"Oh my god, Mary Anne, you're blushing," Kristy said, her mouth full of cereal again, "It's Byron, isn't it?"

"Mayyybe," she said as she typed in a reply. _No, that's Smite Hall. Smith is actually back by where we had class this morning, sorry. Two buildings down on the left._

"Let me see, let me see, let me see!"

"It's really not that fascinating, Kristy, he just needed directions to Smith."

_That sucks. I guess I'm going to be even later to class than I thought. Oh well. What are you up to?_

"Bo-ring, let me know when he sends you a nude pic," Kristy said as she got up to wash her cereal bowl. 

_Just hanging out with Kristy before she heads to class. Nothing too exciting. I guess this means you don't have to run off so quickly after class on Thursday?_

Mary Anne waited for a minute, but his reply didn't come. She knew he was trying to walk and find the building, so she tried not to be too disappointed, and she _definitely_ tried not to worry that she'd been too forward with that question. That was ridiculous, right? He'd accepted her invitation to dinner, he must want to spend time with her. Right?

She got up and put her bag away in her bedroom, and was just sitting down on her bed with a book to read when her phone finally chimed again. When she read it, a huge grin spread over her face.

_No, definitely won't be running off. I'm sorry I thought I had to today. I'm looking forward to class now, I'm really glad you're in it. I hope you don't mind me telling you this, but I actually had a huge crush on you when I was a kid. It'll be nice to get to know you as an equal, instead of as a babysitter._

"What did he say? You're blushing _and_ grinning like a fool, I know he said something good." Kristy, who had apparently been watching Mary Anne from the doorway to her bedroom, ran in and threw herself down on the bed. Mary Anne turned the phone toward her. "Awwwww!" Kristy said after reading the text. "He's a keeper, Mary Anne, I can tell. He always was a sweet kid. I mean, guy." 

Mary Anne couldn't stop smiling. "Y'know, I think he really might be. Oh, and you won't believe what he had to tell me about _Jeff_ of all people..."

**Author's Note:**

> To bloodredcherries - I don't know if you wanted Mary Anne and Byron as a pairing, but you listed them both so I hope you don't mind! I hope you enjoy this little bit of fluff. :) And I managed to work Jeff in, too, sort of!
> 
> (To anyone who knows UConn's campus better than I do - I hope you can overlook my use of completely fictional buildings.)


End file.
